CIRCA 1990

I was sent a group of photos a short while back of several of my pots that were in an auction in Cleveland which all date back to my first year at CSU, circa 1990. This illustrated slipware wallbowl was made way back when I had been making pots for about a year and was the origins of the wallbowl which I make to this day. This particular piece probably measures under 14" across and has a black slip base with brushed on sky blue and leaf green and then is completed with thick black trailed accents. If memory serves me, the stains all came from someone who was moving out of the area and was done in clay so I inherited a lot of misc. materials including about 40 pounds of various colorants so I was constantly looking for ways to make use of the materials. I think it important to note that when these were made I had been throwing for about a year and was beginning to hone in on slipware as a preferred way to work which would ultimately be distilled down to mostly black and white work. I distinctly remember making quite a bit of various slip oriented pieces on terra cotta over a two to three month period before really defining what I was after and this pot like quite few others was among the first steps to a journey that has miles yet to go.

"From the end springs new beginnings."  Pliny the Elder

As a mandated public service announcement, don't forget to put away your John Travolta, SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER inspired suits until next year as Labor Day is here and white is out.

HONOHO

Not that this will make for a very interesting blog post but considering the "I have nothing to say so I will blog about it" origins of my blog, here goes. I encountered the Honoho ceramic magazine back in 1998 or 1999 at  the Kinokuniya bookstore in NYC. Since that time and on various trips to Japan I have put together almost a complete set. I am still missing No.1 that was lost when a box packed by a moving company was lost along with two bronzes that were gifts from the artists but I digress and to the point of this post. Over the years, I continually thumb through the various books, catalogues and issues of the Honoho  gleaning a ground level history of modern Japanese pottery and though the articles (of the Honoho) are the focal point of the publication, it is equally as interesting to see the ads that go in to each issue. The articles, spotlights and ads give a glimpse in to fashion and trends with the popular potters and ceramic artists being given the lion's share of the content and considering the magazine dates back to 1983 you can see who is in vogue and who is missing from the publication along the way. The main staples are the likes of Kawai, Rosanjin, Okabe Mineo, Kato Tokuro, Arakawa and other giants of the field but you never know who you will find from issue to issue and if you pay enough attention you can gather trends within the field, who is hot and who is not.

To this end, illustrated is a quick shot from a Honoho issue of a Shigaraki slab tsubo by Furutani Michio. Dating to 1990, this pot is linked with Furutani as one of his most iconic and classic forms which he has made in a variety of shapes and sizes, each one unique but connected within a wonderful body of work left by this pioneering  and sorely missed potter.

"I keep six honest serving men
(They taught me all I knew);
There names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who." Rudyard Kipling

E+E+P=D

If there is anything you can predict about the works by Suzuki Goro it is that they are slightly unpredictable and you will likely be just a bit surprised by the end result. Fashioned in what appears to be the calm within a storm, Goro's works are equal measures of experimentation, experience and playfulness which is a delight to the viewer and user alike as these casual creations are packaged energy, enthusiasm and delight. I photographed almost every square centimeter of this Suzuki Goro Shino mizusashi and decided to show this detail shot of the lid and gallery to emphasize my point about his work. As you can see there is a wonderfully casual interaction between the base and the lid where the wonky, thick lipped lid has been altered out of round a bit like a rollercoaster ride to fit within the altered gallery which gives the pot so much more movement and energy. The thick band at the top of pot adds a bit of tension and strength to the mizusashi and the iron and Shino further articulate and animate the pot creating a rather conversant object. Suzuki Goro rarely fails to provide ample details within his cohesive piece(s) that are like an author writing a book, he has taken the story as far along as he can and lets the viewer finish it as they see fit.

"The very essence of playfulness is an openness to anything that may happen, the feeling that whatever happens, it's okay.... you're either free to play, or you're not."  John Cleese  

DEEP BLACK & BRIGHT WHITE

Here is one of the sets of mugs that came out of the kiln last Monday, as you can see, the surface is best characterized as deep black, bright white with a great rich terra cotta red. All of this group were fired toward the top of the kiln and got a bit hotter than the bottom which yields this deep red color from my terra cotta, I love the way the red, black and white work together in simple harmony and the mug interior is spacious and fit for any liquid you have in mind. As a preference I have used a terra cotta mug for my coffee and tea in the studio for a good number of years; the clay holds the heat or cold just a bit longer than the stoneware or porcelain and as I mentioned, I love the wonderful visual flavor of terra cotta even though as a throwing clay, as I have stated before, it tests the bonds of the love/ hate relationship.

ON THE EDGE

Illustrated is another one of those pesky detail shots (and I have plenty of them) that shows off the mouth of a Shigaraki henko rather nicely. The henko in question was made by Shigaraki potter, Imura Mitsuo and on top of being a rather interesting form, the pot was fired on the end which also allowed the ash to run horizontally contrary to conventional thoughts regarding gravity as you look at the displayed piece. Back to the mouth for a moment, as you may be aware, the henko was made by coiling, creating a semi-geometric form that culminates in an austere, purposeful conclusion that has a weathered, perhaps rustic attitude, appearing just a bit like it is crumbling back in to the earth. The mouth has a great flashed surface with areas glistening a bit like it is wet with areas of accumulated ash built up around the depressed area adding even more effect to the narrative about clay, space, time and fire. Perhaps what strikes me most is the organic quality to neck and mouth which springs from a soft angularity and battle worn surface of the body of the henko, contrasting in a sense of harmony that is a not so easy balance to be negotiated but in this case, it just work. More photos to follow or perhaps a video slideshow at some point in the future.

"Gravity wins over all other known forces."  Andrea Ghez

IMPROMPTU PORTRAIT

 

I recently helped facilitate a trade between two collector resulting in the fact that each felt like they got the better of the deal which at the end of the day is exactly the way it should be. The illustrated Iga chawan which I had here a short while back is one of the bowls that was sent my way before being shipped off to the new owner who was coincidentally the original owner who had decided to sell the piece several months prior. The original owner and now current owner regretted having sold the piece and was happy to get it back and considering I have had it on two occasions to study, I understand why and isn't it odd how things work out? Made by Iga potter, Kojima Kenji as you can see in this impromptu portrait the bowl is quite a handful in person with a great posture and confident presence. The face has a rather nice, wet surface of natural ash with the rest of the pot being a balance of ash deposit across the breath of the interior floor and a fine "baked red" clay flavor completing the narrative of this chawan. The pot is finished with a rather nice, casual kodai that is typical of Kojima with not a hint of anything fussy or contrived. The truth is that it is just a classic Ko-Iga style chawan that would be a pleasure to use and even more so just to handle and spend time with.

A ROUND PEG IN A SQUARE HOLE

I recently made a series of terra cotta v-bowls and pasta bowls and realized I had all these squarish spaces  between where the bowls would be stacked in the kiln. Realizing that the spaces were a bit narrow for teabowls or soup bowls it made sense that I needed to make round pegs to go in these square holes and settled on two groups of six mugs. This illustrated group of mugs were first coated in black and then trailed in white slip letting gravity do most of the work. The mugs are fairly generous in their proportions being over 5" tall and each of the handles is finished off with an applied thumb rest which I like to add which also matches the applied button on the foot where I impress my pottery mark. Another feature that you can't see in the picture is that at the base of each handle is impressed a decorative stamp that just adds another feature to each mug and is something I have just seemed to done going back to CSU and perhaps even back to my early days working in Plattsburgh, I just can't remember at this point. These mugs were fired this weekend and the kiln is quietly cooling as I type this so I will post up a photo of the finished product(s) at some point in the near future.

CLASSICAL ARCHETYPE

Perched atop a lid, this enameled shishi stands guard, at the ready on this classically designed Kutani koro. This fantastically designed koro with the main feature of the shishi guardian is flanked by two stylized dragon handles while delicately balanced on three tall pillar-like legs and the entire piece is expertly overglazed in varying hues that the maker, Ningen Kokuho Tokuda Yasokichi III became synonymous with. This tripod koro was made early in Tokuda's career and is in fact signed with his earlier moniker, Masahiko and though a rather traditional piece it clearly shows the promise of the saiyu techniques that he is best known for. What is immediately evident despite the use of a classical archetype is that this is still a rather modern pot and was made with exacting precision with a lid that fits exceptionally well and despite the appendages it balance well on the tall legs. Despite the fragile looking nature of the piece, it is rather robust and sturdy and makes for an wonderfully functional koro though this particular one has never been used. Despite being made early in Tokuda Yasokichi's career, I suspect the original owners revered, even cherished this piece a bit too much and I hope this short slideshow conveys the charm and elegance of a koro perhaps just a bit too nice to use.

1989

Illustrated is a large, rather well weathered Raku teabowl by one of my favorite people ever; Bill Klock. I was around when Bill threw this teabowl, when it was tooled and later glazed and fired, it was late in '89. I am not exactly sure when, but at some point Bill and a student (perhaps Dave Farrell) built a rather nice, somewhat large Raku kiln in preparation for Paul Soldner coming to PSUC to give an extended workshop. As I mention, the kiln was a good size, perhaps 14cft and used propane and came to temperature rather easily, stayed hot while removing pots and was just easy to use. Another two students and I used it quite often and I was able to work out a number of accent glazes that could be used on top of various glazes they were already using as well as being able to spray the surfaces using paper and cardboard cutouts to create designs.

I have absolutely no examples or photos of these early Raku pots, all were given and traded away, I still have several of Bill's from these firings of which this is one of them. Generous in size and perched upon a classic Bill foot. This pot was glazed up in Soldner's white and then green glaze I had made up was trailed over the surface, the addition of the blue decoration was mine and in fact was simply added by dipping my fingers in the glaze and touching them to the surface and you can see my thumbprint to the extreme right. Pulled from the kiln, the teabowl was placed in a barrel filled with shredded paper and sawdust for the post firing reduction. This teabowl had been in a box since our move from Cleveland many moons ago and I woke up one morning and just decided it was time to pull it out and put it on a shelf where I could see it every day. Bill may be gone but in some small part due to the handful of his puts that are about the house, I feel like I carry on a quiet and thoughtful conversation.

Despite Bill's inclinations, I know that as we were doing Raku there was music playing in the background as there were a group of students involved and a democracy rules. In all honesty I can't say I remember what was on but it was most likely a Vermont FM radio station playing all of the hits of 1989;

PREDICTABILITY

It had been a while since I had thrown any porcelain teabowls so for the last stoneware firing I ended up throwing a half dozen porcelain bowls for various finishes. In the end I glazed up two in temmoku and ash, two in saffron iron yellow and two in the Ao+ I have been working with. This teabowl, a wangata influenced piece, well, Kawai Kanjiro influenced to put a fine point on it, has kushime style slip decoration under the Ao+ and came out with a variety of blue, gosu tones, especially on the front of the bowl and all around the foot where the glaze has run down the slip channels creating a number of rather pretty effects which stop just about the actual foot. Where I put in a tea pool depression, the glaze has set up in such a way as to look like various orbits culminating in a pale blue dot at the center which also makes for a rather interesting effect. I really enjoy using my Oribe and Ao+ since both have a tendency to run and pool, the end results are not at all predictable and in my mind, there is no other way I would want it.

There are a few more pictures of this teabowl over at my Trocadero marketplace, check here if you are so inclined;

https://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1406040/ROBUST-AO-WANGATA-STYLE-TEABOWL-TB1190